BMAT Moral Action Committee Watchman Report   #193     06/27/2008

              News Topics of a Conservative Interest or Moral Concern – New Format

      

 

 

Obama: America is 'No longer Christian' - Democrat Says Nation Also for Muslims, and Nonbelievers - JERUSALEM – Some have been taking issue with largely unnoticed comments made last year by Sen. Barack Obama declaring the U.S. is "no longer a Christian nation" but is also a nation of others, including Muslims and nonbelievers. "Whatever we once were, we're no longer a Christian nation. At least not just. We are also a Jewish nation, a Muslim nation, and a Buddhist nation, and a Hindu nation, and a nation of nonbelievers," Obama said during a June 2007 speech available on YouTube. At the speech, Obama also seemingly blasted the "Christian Right" for hijacking religion and using it to divide the nation. More

NY Radical Gov. Allows Cross-Dressing in Juvenile Jail Kids Prisons - A decision by New York's Office of Children and Family Services is definitely making an unfashionable statement. In the state's 30 juvenile jails, kids who are confused about their gender are allowed to wear the uniform and underwear of their choosing. As part of the "anti-discrimination" policy, New York is dedicating taxpayer dollars to providing transgender kids with both a male and female wardrobe. In addition to their clothes, officers are required to call these inmates by whatever name they choose as well as offer them special housing. More

Judge Roy Moore Applauds Supreme Court's Landmark Decision Affirming Individual Right to Keep and Bear Arms - WASHINGTON,  Former Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore and the Foundation for Moral Law welcomed the U.S. Supreme Court's historic decision today in District of Columbia v. Heller, holding that D.C.'s handgun ban violated the individual "right of the people to keep and bear arms" protected by the Second Amendment.  As the Foundation urged the Court to do in its amicus curiae brief filed in this case, the Court not only came to the correct conclusion about the Second Amendment but it did so by consulting the words of the Constitution, its history, and the people's common understanding of the amendment when it was adopted in 1791. More

Provision Giving Planned Parenthood More Funding Stripped from U.S. War Supplemental Bill - Pro-life groups across the U.S. are celebrating a victory with the removal of an amendment to the 2008 War Supplemental Bill (H.R. 2642) that would have given Planned Parenthood facilities discounted drugs at taxpayer expense. The amendment, tacked on to a bill meant to fund the war in Iraq and Afghanistan, would have allowed for certain Planned Parenthood clinics and university healthcare centers to get drugs at further reduced prices, allowing for easier and cheaper distribution of controversial drugs such as birth control pills and the "morning after pill" or Plan B. The U.S. House of Representatives, however, stripped the Planned Parenthood provision at the last minute and then passed the bill last night. More

Stop the ACLU in Texas: Share the News with others and TAKE A STAND! - Kelly Shackelford is calling for 10,000 Texans to stand with Free Market against the ACLU’s invasion into Texas. Just a week ago, the anti-freedom group announced a $335 million campaign to set up camp and move into key heartland states—primarily Texas. As you can see from their attack on traditional marriage in California, the ACLU is a major threat to families once they become grounded in a state. Their tactic is to file lawsuits with the court that open doors to same-sex marriages rather than allowing you as a people to have a voice with a vote, and as Texans who like our freedom to vote and voice our opinion, we want to keep them out. More

Dallas Abortion Clinic Closing-Pro-Life Victories Coming to Texas - Only three clinics in Texas are authorized to perform late-term abortions—and last week one of those announced it is closing its doors. Aaron Women’s Health Center in Dallas is shutting down, making hopeful progress towards the decrease (and ultimately end) of abortions in Texas. The abortion clinic was renovated in 2005 to comply with a law that then certified its facility as an “ambulatory surgical center.” After the certification, Aaron Women’s Health Center became a rarity in abortions, performing the procedure on babies past 16 months’ gestation. These abortions are now stopped, thanks to pressure from pro-life advocates, picketers and lobbyists whose right to voice their support of unborn life has been protected by Free Market’s legal division. More

'Adios' English school? North Carolina Administrator wants Spanish as Main Language Amid Soaring Illegal Immigration - Dissatisfied with teaching in Spanish 85 percent of the time, a North Carolina superintendent is pushing for a proposal that includes a plan for a school where Spanish is the predominant language. Superintendent Peter Gorman has proposed to  to combine two of its dual-language programs and turn Collinswood Elementary into a Spanish-speaking school. Nora Carr, chief communications officer for Charlotte-Mecklenburg School District, told WND the facility will help to preserve Hispanic culture. When students reach the first grade, they spend more than half the day learning in Spanish only. Homework is allowed to be completed in either language. With nearly 117,000 students, the Charlotte-Mecklenburg School District is the nation's 23rd largest public school district. It sparked public controversy last year when a student named Jose Velasquez recited the Pledge of Allegiance in English at his Garinger High School graduation, the Charlotte Observer reported. Immediately afterward, CMS organizers requested that he repeat the pledge in Spanish. More

Court Rules Church Immune to Lawsuit by Nonmember -  A New Jersey appeals court says a woman injured in a fall at a church where her teenage son was a member cannot sue because she's considered a beneficiary of its mission. The court said the Liberty Corner Presbyterian Church is protected from such a negligence case by the state's Charitable Immunity Act even though the mother was not a church member. The panel ruled that in choosing to let her son attend the church, Joan Patterson "benefited from the religious, spiritual, moral, and ethical education that her son was receiving." The decision reversed a trial judge's ruling and ordered that the woman's lawsuit be dismissed.

Russia Frees US Pastor Jailed for Importing Bullets -  An American pastor walked free Tuesday after spending nearly five months in a Russian jail for bringing hunting-rifle ammunition into the country. The release of Phillip Miles, 58, came a day after the Moscow City Court reduced his three-year sentence for smuggling and ordered him set free. The pastor said he hoped to continue his humanitarian work in Russia, which includes bringing recovered drug addicts from the United States to help recovering addicts in Russia. "The Lord willing, I'll be back," he said. More

Obama Flip-Flops on D.C. School Voucher Program - Now Intends to Squash it - A landmark education program that provides opportunity to hundreds of families in the nation's capital to attend private schools is being opposed by Democrats in Congress. Barack Obama told the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel in February that he was open to voucher programs, but just last week announced his intentions to squash the DC pilot program. "Barack Obama prefers private education for his daughters but won't give DC parents the same opportunity," said Brian Burch, President of Fidelis, a Catholic-based political, legal, research and educational organization. More

Norway Joins California Judges in Legalizing Same Sex Marriage - No doubt emboldened by four judges in California, the upper house of Norway's parliament passed a bill by a 23-17 vote on Tuesday joining the lower house to legalize same-sex marriage beginning in January. Norway has had same-sex legal partnerships since 1993 with most of the benefits of marriage. This measure not only gives the name "marriage" but also grants "equal rights" to homosexuals in the adoption of children and fertility services. Advocates claim that broadening the scope of marriage will actually strengthen it as an institution. But Scandinavia and the Netherlands' experiences with counterfeit marriages have thoroughly refuted that argument. More

Canadian Courts Overturn Parental Discipline - A father in Canada grounded his daughter from a school trip because she disobeyed his orders to stay off the Internet, but a court overturned the punishment. According to Agence France-Presse, Justice Suzanne Tessier in Quebec Superior Court ordered the grounding for the 12-year-old girl lifted, prompting the father's lawyer, Kim Beaudoin, to warn, "Parents are going to be walking on egg shells from now on." The father had ordered his daughter, who was not identified by the report, to remain off the Internet. She didn't, chatting on websites her father had tried to block and then posting "inappropriate" pictures of herself online using a friend's Internet portal. As punishment, the father refused to let her go on a scheduled school trip, so the 12-year-old went to Canada's judicial system to get her way. More

Heinz Sells Mayo in an Ad with Homosexual kiss in England - Perhaps the Heinz corporation is attempting to define one of its 57 varieties. An advertisement run on British television for the company's New York Deli Mayo featured a man who children called "mum," a kiss between two men and the closing words – from one man to another – "Love ya! Straight home from work, sweet cheeks." After receiving a reported 200 complaints about the commercial, Heinz pulled the ad from the airwaves, less than a week into its expected five-week run. Nigel Dickie, the Heinz UK director of corporate affairs, told the London Times, "We recognize that some consumers raised concerns over the content of the ad and this prompted our decision to withdraw it." "The advertisement, part of a short-run campaign, was intended to be humorous and we apologize to anyone who felt offended," he said. More

Articles:

Obama: America is 'No longer Christian' - Democrat Says Nation Also for Muslims, and Nonbelievers

June 22 2008 Aaron Klein WorldNetDaily

JERUSALEM – Some have been taking issue with largely unnoticed comments made last year by Sen. Barack Obama declaring the U.S. is "no longer a Christian nation" but is also a nation of others, including Muslims and nonbelievers.

The comments have been recently recirculation on Internet blogs.

"Whatever we once were, we're no longer a Christian nation. At least not just. We are also a Jewish nation, a Muslim nation, and a Buddhist nation, and a Hindu nation, and a nation of nonbelievers," Obama said during a June 2007 speech available on YouTube.

At the speech, Obama also seemingly blasted the "Christian Right" for hijacking religion and using it to divide the nation:

"Somehow, somewhere along the way, faith stopped being used to bring us together and started being used to drive us apart. It got hijacked. Part of it's because of the so-called leaders of the Christian Right, who've been all too eager to exploit what divides us," he said.

Asked last year to clarify his remarks, Obama repeated them to the Christian Broadcast Network:

"I think that the right might worry a bit more about the dangers of sectarianism. Whatever we once were, we're no longer just a Christian nation; we are also a Jewish nation, a Muslim nation, a Buddhist nation, a Hindu nation, and a nation of nonbelievers," Obama wrote in an e-mail to CBN News senior national correspondent David Brody.

"We should acknowledge this and realize that when we're formulating policies from the state house to the Senate floor to the White House, we've got to work to translate our reasoning into values that are accessible to every one of our citizens, not just members of our own faith community," wrote Obama.

Obama did clarify his statement about the "Christian Right."

"My intention was to contrast the heated partisan rhetoric of a distinct minority of Christian leaders with the vast majority of Evangelical Christians – conservatives included – who believe that hate has no place in our politics.

"When you have pastors and television pundits who appear to explicitly coordinate with one political party; when you're implying that your fellow Americans are traitors, terrorist sympathizers or akin to the devil himself; then I think you're attempting to hijack the faith of those who follow you for your own personal or political ends," wrote Obama.

The Illinois senator's speech declaring the U.S. "no longer Christian" was met with little fanfare. But it has been getting some recent play.

A television commercial that aired in South Dakota by a group calling itself the Coalition Against Anti-Christian Rhetoric juxtaposes the audio of Obama's "no longer Christian" statement over images of the presidential candidate dressed in Somali garb and a picture of Obama with his hands rested below his waist while other politicians place their hands over their hearts during the Pledge of Allegiance.

"It's time for people to take a stand against Barack Hussein Obama," declares the voiceover on the commercial.

The Gateway Pundit blog took notice of Obama's speech about the U.S. being a nation also for Muslims and non-believers.

"This won't play well in the Bible Belt," commented the blog in a recent posting.

Obama's campaign has long utilized faith as a central theme. The candidate's Christianity and his former membership in the controversial Trinity United Church of Christ have been much scrutinized.

His comment about the "Christian Right" echoed similar statements made by Merrill A. McPeak, Obama's military adviser and national campaign co-chairman.

As WND reported, in a 2003 interview with The Oregonian newspaper, McPeak seemed to compare evangelical Christians to the terror groups Hamas and Hezbollah.

The Oregonian interviewer asked McPeak whether "there's an element within Hamas, Hezbollah, that doesn't want Israel to exist at all and always will be there?"

McPeak responded by comparing the two terror groups to "radical" Oregonians.

"There's an element in Oregon, you know, that's always going to be radical in some pernicious way, and likely to clothe it in religious garments, so it makes it harder to attack. So there's craziness all over the place."

Oregon has a large evangelical Christian community.

 

 

 

NY Radical Gov. Allows Cross-Dressing in Juvenile Jail Kids Prisons

June 29 2008 Tony Perkins Family Research Council

A decision by New York's Office of Children and Family Services is definitely making an unfashionable statement.

In the state's 30 juvenile jails, kids who are confused about their gender are allowed to wear the uniform and underwear of their choosing.

As part of the "anti-discrimination" policy, New York is dedicating taxpayer dollars to providing transgender kids with both a male and female wardrobe.

In addition to their clothes, officers are required to call these inmates by whatever name they choose as well as offer them special housing. According to state officials, the guidelines went into effect the day that radical Gov. David Paterson (D), a powerful sympathizer and advocate of the homosexuality community, took office.

Susan Hazeldean, an employee of the Urban Justice Center, said, "What we were concerned about is that LGBT young people are entering these programs facing a lot of hostility and violence...We think this policy is going to make a real difference."

The only difference that these concessions are going to make is in the widespread encouragement of special rights for cross-dressing teens. Gender Identity Disorder is listed as an official mental illness, and these disturbed young people need psychotherapy aimed at helping them to accept their biological sex. For a prison to indulge this madness, instead of treating it, is itself a form a madness.

Additional Resources
AP: New transgender policy at New York juvenile jails

 

 

 

Judge Roy Moore Applauds Supreme Court's Landmark Decision Affirming Individual Right to Keep and Bear Arms

June 26 2008 Christian Newswire

WASHINGTON,  Former Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore and the Foundation for Moral Law welcomed the U.S. Supreme Court's historic decision today in District of Columbia v. Heller, holding that D.C.'s handgun ban violated the individual "right of the people to keep and bear arms" protected by the Second Amendment.  As the Foundation urged the Court to do in its amicus curiae brief filed in this case, the Court not only came to the correct conclusion about the Second Amendment but it did so by consulting the words of the Constitution, its history, and the people's common understanding of the amendment when it was adopted in 1791.

Judge Moore commented on this important decision:            

"Our Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms, like the right to acknowledge God, is one of the inalienable rights protected in the Constitution.  Today, as we urged them to do in our legal brief, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld this essential right by following the words of the law and the common understanding of the amendment when it was adopted.  We will continue to urge the Court to construe the Constitution according to its text and original meaning."

The Court's opinion in Heller confirmed that the Second Amendment was adopted by Americans in the founding era who had a healthy fear of government power and a respect for the right of self-defense.  They, therefore, protected the fundamental right of every individual--"the people"--to keep and bear firearms, a right that, just like the rights of the First Amendment, pre-dated the Constitution.  The right to keep and bear arms, the Founders knew, is the means by which our other God-given inalienable rights are ultimately protected, including the freedom of religion.

Just this past Monday, the Foundation argued that the Court should do with the "freedom of speech" clause in the First Amendment exactly what the Court did today with the Second Amendment.  In an amicus brief filed in the case of Pleasant Grove City v. Summum, the Foundation argued that the original words and meaning of the Free Speech Clause had a limited understanding and was designed to protect the people from government tyranny.  The text protects speech about political matters and public figures, and does not require that public parks which display Ten Commandments monuments must also erect monuments to the Summum religion or any other.

The Foundation for Moral Law, a national, non-profit legal organization, is located in Montgomery, Alabama, and is dedicated to restoring the knowledge of God in law and government through litigation and education relating to moral issues and religious liberty.

 

 

 

Provision Giving Planned Parenthood More Funding Stripped from U.S. War Supplemental Bill

June 20, 2008 Thaddeus M. Baklinski LifeSiteNews.com

WASHINGTON, - Pro-life groups across the U.S. are celebrating a victory with the removal of an amendment to the 2008 War Supplemental Bill (H.R. 2642) that would have given Planned Parenthood facilities discounted drugs at taxpayer expense.

The amendment, tacked on to a bill meant to fund the war in Iraq and Afghanistan, would have allowed for certain Planned Parenthood clinics and university healthcare centers to get drugs at further reduced prices, allowing for easier and cheaper distribution of controversial drugs such as birth control pills and the "morning after pill" or Plan B.

The U.S. House of Representatives, however, stripped the Planned Parenthood provision at the last minute and then passed the bill last night.

Wendy Wright, President of Concerned Women for America (CWA), said, "Our troops need funding, and their bill should not be loaded up with benefits for Planned Parenthood. Planned Parenthood already receives over $300 million in funding from federal, state and local governments. In 2006, Planned Parenthood reported a record revenue of $112 million. CWA is pleased this bill funds our troops instead of lining the already inflated pockets of Planned Parenthood."

Shari Rendall, CWA's Director of Legislation and Public Policy said this was this was a "grass roots" victory for all the pro-life Americans who took action by writing to their representatives on this issue.

"We could not have done this without our members taking action. Our successes are so reliant on your efforts. A lot of times you feel like you don't make a difference. Well, today shows that you all truly do make a difference," Rendall said.

Marie Hahnenburg of the American Life League said, "It is outrageous that this funding bill, [which] is for our troops, could actually give money to Planned Parenthood, an organization that is the largest abortion chain in the country."

Hahnenburg explained that Planned Parenthood currently buys birth-control pills for $2 for a month's supply, and then turns around and sells them for $18 to $30. "Why does this organization need any more of our tax dollars?" she asked. "It makes no sense. They're out to kill our babies and sexualize our young people. This organization must be stopped. They should not be receiving any of our dollars."

ABC News reported that last month that Senator John McCain called a similar, but more expensive version of the supplemental war funding bill "bloated" and "loaded down with extraneous provisions unrelated to the ongoing conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan."

Today, McCain's Senate office released a written statement welcoming the passage of the pared-down version of the bill:

"I am pleased an agreement has finally been reached to fund our troops... Fortunately, it is reported that an agreement between the House, Senate, and Administration is imminent, and urgently needed funding will be enacted shortly not only to aid our troops, but to fund several emergencies throughout our nation, particularly in the Midwest. We need to provide federal assistance to these flood damaged communities as soon as possible."

Considering the number of accusations leveled at Planned Parenthood in the last six months, including a multi-million suit involving a fraudulent mark-up on the price of these very pills, Congress should be highly skeptical of the investments it's already making in Planned Parenthood--let alone future ones.

Additional Resources
LifeNews: Planned Parenthood Abortion Business Funding Removed From Troop Bill

 

 

 

Around Texas:

Stop the ACLU in Texas: Share the News with others and TAKE A STAND!

June 25 2008 Free Market Foundation

Kelly Shackelford is calling for 10,000 Texans to stand with Free Market against the ACLU’s invasion into Texas.

Just a week ago, the anti-freedom group announced a $335 million campaign to set up camp and move into key heartland states—primarily Texas.

As you can see from their attack on traditional marriage in California, the ACLU is a major threat to families once they become grounded in a state. Their tactic is to file lawsuits with the court that open doors to same-sex marriages rather than allowing you as a people to have a voice with a vote, and as Texans who like our freedom to vote and voice our opinion, we want to keep them out.

Free Market’s legal division, dubbed ‘the flip-side to the ACLU’ by the Dallas Morning News, has battled and won against the ACLU in defense of Bible courses, veterans memorials and marriage…but as they amass troops in Texas we need your help.

To learn more about what the ACLU means for your family, church and community CLICK HERE. If you have not yet joined us, TAKE A STAND!

 

 

 

Dallas Abortion Clinic Closing-Pro-Life Victories Coming to Texas

June 25 2008 Free Market Foundation

Only three clinics in Texas are authorized to perform late-term abortions—and last week one of those announced it is closing its doors. Aaron Women’s Health Center in Dallas is shutting down, making hopeful progress towards the decrease (and ultimately end) of abortions in Texas.

The abortion clinic was renovated in 2005 to comply with a law that then certified its facility as an “ambulatory surgical center.” After the certification, Aaron Women’s Health Center became a rarity in abortions, performing the procedure on babies past 16 months’ gestation. These abortions are now stopped, thanks to pressure from pro-life advocates, picketers and lobbyists whose right to voice their support of unborn life has been protected by Free Market’s legal division.

The brutal reality about what takes place at these ‘health centers makes us all the more grateful for the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to uphold the federal ban on late-term abortions last year.

Likewise, pro-lifers won another victory last week when the U.S. Congress passed a war appropriations bill without major funding for Planned Parenthood using your tax dollars.

The closing of Aaron Women’s brings these federal victories closer to our Texas home, and next legislative session Free Market looks forward to continuing its fight for pro-life bills that that require more information about the damaging effects of abortion be provided to a mother and that ultimately protect the sanctity of life.

 

 


 

'Adios' English school? North Carolina Administrator wants Spanish as Main Language Amid Soaring Illegal Immigration

June 24 2008 Chelsea Schilling WorldNetDaily


Peter Gorman (courtesy Charlotte Observer)
 

Dissatisfied with teaching in Spanish 85 percent of the time, a North Carolina superintendent is pushing for a proposal that includes a plan for a school where Spanish is the predominant language.

Superintendent Peter Gorman pitched his proposal to the Charlotte-Mecklenburg school board today, with provisions to combine two of its dual-language programs and turn Collinswood Elementary into a Spanish-speaking school. Nora Carr, chief communications officer for Charlotte-Mecklenburg School District, told WND the facility will help to preserve Hispanic culture.

"We find that a lot of kids who go there have parents who might be English-speaking immigrants, and they might be very successful," she said. "They fear that their kids might be losing some of the culture or not getting the fluency in the language because they speak English at home."

Carr said one of the top executives with AT&T is Hispanic and sends his children to the school.

"Obviously they are very fluent, well-educated in English, legal citizens," she said. "They're sending their kids there because they want them to have exposure to their native language."

Collinswood Dual Language Academy already provides a K-5 "language immersion program." The school began with a total Spanish curriculum. According to a brochure to promote the Spanish services, "In this dual language program, kindergarteners spend 85% of the instructional day learning the curriculum in Spanish and 15% of the day learning in English."

Carr said the program places equal emphasis on fluency in English and Spanish, but according to a program brochure, Collinswood teachers provide instruction in Spanish while introducing English words. Texts are provided in Spanish as well.

When students reach the first grade, they spend more than half the day learning in Spanish only. Homework is allowed to be completed in either language.

However, the dual language program could place even more emphasis on Spanish and stretch the curriculum into the eighth grade if Gorman's plan is approved.

Collinswood enrolls more than 510 students, and the population is 53 percent Hispanic, 29 percent black and 17 percent white. The school estimates 66 percent of the student population is eligible to receive low-income free or reduced-price school lunches.

With nearly 117,000 students, the Charlotte-Mecklenburg School District is the nation's 23rd largest public school district. It sparked public controversy last year when a student named Jose Velasquez recited the Pledge of Allegiance in English at his Garinger High School graduation, the Charlotte Observer reported. Immediately afterward, CMS organizers requested that he repeat the pledge in Spanish.


Collinswood School

Based on U.S. Census 2000 figures, the Hispanic population increased 571 percent in Mecklenburg County from 1990 to 2000. Likewise, Charlotte-Mecklenburg schools experienced a 822 percent jump in Hispanic enrollments from 1995 to 2000.

According to the City of Charlotte's Mayor's Immigration Study, much of the growth is "due to the high birth rate of Hispanics and illegal immigrants in Mecklenburg County. … However, the full impact of illegal or legal immigration for the school system cannot be determined, as Charlotte Mecklenburg Schools, like schools across the country, do not ask for citizenship status when students are enrolled for the academic year."

CMS claims the cost per student is $8,198. The study multiplies that number by the 13,000 students in the Limited English Proficiency program and estimates that $106 million is spent on illegal immigrants in the district. In 2006, CMS received $6 million in state funding for the LEP program.

 

 

 

Court Rules Church Immune to Lawsuit by Nonmember

June 25 2008 Church Report

NEWARK, N.J. - A New Jersey appeals court says a woman injured in a fall at a church where her teenage son was a member cannot sue because she's considered a beneficiary of its mission.

The court said the Liberty Corner Presbyterian Church is protected from such a negligence case by the state's Charitable Immunity Act even though the mother was not a church member.

The panel ruled that in choosing to let her son attend the church, Joan Patterson "benefited from the religious, spiritual, moral, and ethical education that her son was receiving."

The decision reversed a trial judge's ruling and ordered that the woman's lawsuit be dismissed.

 

 

 

 

Russia Frees US Pastor Jailed for Importing Bullets

June 25 2008 Church Report

MOSCOW — An American pastor walked free Tuesday after spending nearly five months in a Russian jail for bringing hunting-rifle ammunition into the country. The release of Phillip Miles, 58, came a day after the Moscow City Court reduced his three-year sentence for smuggling and ordered him set free.

Miles, a pastor at Christ Community Church in Conway, South Carolina, said he was well treated in custody.

"The Russian people are the most wonderful people in the world," he said after walking out of Detention Center No. 5 on the grimy edge of Moscow, where he was met by a friend, a U.S. Embassy representative and his lawyer, who was bearing red roses.

The pastor said he hoped to continue his humanitarian work in Russia, which includes bringing recovered drug addicts from the United States to help recovering addicts in Russia. "The Lord willing, I'll be back," he said.

Miles was convicted in April after security officers at a Moscow airport found a box of .300-caliber cartridges in his luggage. He apologized repeatedly, saying the ammunition was for a Russian friend, also a pastor, who had recently bought a new Winchester hunting rifle, and that he did not know that bringing ammunition into the country was illegal.

"Who would risk prison for a $25 box of bullets that you can buy right here in Moscow?" Miles said Tuesday.

His lawyer, Vladimir Ryakhovsky, called it an honest mistake but said the English-language customs signs at Moscow's Sheremetyevo airport were unclear and confusing.

Russian officers confiscated the ammunition when Miles arrived on Jan. 29 but allowed him to continue on to Perm, a city about 750 miles east of Moscow. He was arrested when he returned on Feb. 3.

Miles has traveled to Russia more than 10 times with Evangel Fellowship International, a charity organization founded by his father in 1983, which has given more than $11 million in aid, primarily to Russian hospitals.

He plans to leave Russia once he has obtained an exit visa, expected in the coming days.

 

 

 

Obama Flip-Flops on D.C. School Voucher Program - Now Intends to Squash it

June 25 2008 LifeSiteNews.com

A landmark education program that provides opportunity to hundreds of families in the nation's capital to attend private schools is being opposed by Democrats in Congress.
 
Barack Obama told the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel in February that he was open to voucher programs, but just last week announced his intentions to squash the DC pilot program.
 
"Barack Obama prefers private education for his daughters but won't give DC parents the same opportunity," said Brian Burch, President of Fidelis, a Catholic-based political, legal, research and educational organization. 
 
"Vouchers are Change," he continued. "Rather than subjecting kids to rotting schools, vouchers have brought change to hundreds of families, who opted for private or parochial schools. If Barack Obama had fought for this program, it would be saved. But he refuses to help these low-income families. By supporting the teachers union, he sadly has become the Status Quo Candidate on education." 
 
Back in February, it looked like Barack Obama would be willing to back the teachers union and support the voucher program.
 
The Illinois Senator told the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel: "If there was any argument for vouchers, it was 'Alright, let's see if this experiment works,' and if it does, then whatever my preconceptions, my attitude is you do what works for the kids," the senator said. "I will not allow my predispositions to stand in the way of making sure that our kids can learn. We're losing several generations of kids and something has to be done."
 
But by June, the teachers lobby convinced Obama to work against the program.

The senator told ABC News last week: "We don't have enough slots for every child to go into a parochial school or a private school. And what you would see is a huge drain of resources out of the public schools."
 
Fidelis also said Republicans in Congress, including long-time voucher supporter Sen. John McCain, deserve credit for placing parents and kids above the special interests of the teachers union.

At a 2007 presidential primary debate, McCain said: "Choice and competition is the key to success in education in America. That means charter schools, that means home schooling, it means vouchers, it means rewarding good teachers and finding bad teachers another line of work."
 
Burch concluded, saying, "Over the last eight years, we have seen some progress on education reform. John McCain has been a long-time advocate of education reform by providing alternatives to low-income families. Despite all the criticisms about Washington lobbyists and special interests, Barack Obama has sided with one of the most powerful special interest groups in Washington, this time at the expense of the educational future of thousands of children."

 

 

 

Norway Joins California Judges in Legalizing Same Sex Marriage

June 19 2008 Tony Perkins Family Research Council

No doubt emboldened by four judges in California, the upper house of Norway's parliament passed a bill by a 23-17 vote on Tuesday joining the lower house to legalize same-sex marriage beginning in January. Norway has had same-sex legal partnerships since 1993 with most of the benefits of marriage. This measure not only gives the name "marriage" but also grants "equal rights" to homosexuals in the adoption of children and fertility services.

Advocates claim that broadening the scope of marriage will actually strengthen it as an institution. But Scandinavia and the Netherlands' experiences with counterfeit marriages have thoroughly refuted that argument. Heterosexual marriage rates have plummeted, unstable cohabiting relationships have increased, out-of-wedlock births have skyrocketed, and left-wing political parties have been emboldened to press for even more radical changes, such as legal recognition of "polyamorous" relationships. While other, more liberal countries may be blazing a trail of social experimentation, rest assured they are watching America for validation.

Additional Resources
AP: Norway passes law approving gay marriage

 

 

 

Canadian Courts Overturn Parental Discipline

June 21 2008 Prophecy News Watch

A father in Canada grounded his daughter from a school trip because she disobeyed his orders to stay off the Internet, but a court overturned the punishment.

According to Agence France-Presse, Justice Suzanne Tessier in Quebec Superior Court ordered the grounding for the 12-year-old girl lifted, prompting the father's lawyer, Kim Beaudoin, to warn, "Parents are going to be walking on egg shells from now on."

The father had ordered his daughter, who was not identified by the report, to remain off the Internet. She didn't, chatting on websites her father had tried to block and then posting "inappropriate" pictures of herself online using a friend's Internet portal.

As punishment, the father refused to let her go on a scheduled school trip, so the 12-year-old went to Canada's judicial system to get her way.

Beaudoin told AFP the punishment was for her own protection, and he is pursuing an appeal.

"She's a child," Beaudoin said. "At her age, children test their limits and it's up to their parents to set boundaries."

The lawyer said she'll try to "re-establish" parental authority and to make sure the judge's opinion doesn't set a precedent.

"I think most children respect their parents and would never go so far as to take them to court, but it's clear that some would and we have to ask ourselves how far this will go," Beaudoin said.

Court records indicated the 12-year-old's violation of her home's Internet rules was just one in a list of instructions that she had violated. But Tessier said the punishment was just too much.

 

 

 

Heinz Sells Mayo in an Ad with Homosexual kiss in England
 

June 24 2008 WorldNetDaily

Perhaps the Heinz corporation is attempting to define one of its 57 varieties.

An advertisement run on British television for the company's New York Deli Mayo featured a man who children called "mum," a kiss between two men and the closing words – from one man to another – "Love ya! Straight home from work, sweet cheeks."

After receiving a reported 200 complaints about the commercial, Heinz pulled the ad from the airwaves, less than a week into its expected five-week run.

Nigel Dickie, the Heinz UK director of corporate affairs, told the London Times, "We recognize that some consumers raised concerns over the content of the ad and this prompted our decision to withdraw it."

"The advertisement, part of a short-run campaign, was intended to be humorous and we apologize to anyone who felt offended," he said.

The commercial (which you can see below) features a man in a white apron and deli hat making school lunches behind the kitchen counter for children who call him "mum." When the "father" in the family starts to leave for work, the deli man calls him back in a thick, New York accent with the words, "Hey! Ain't you forgetting something?"

The other man returns, and the two share a quick kiss.

While America is embroiled on controversy over homosexuality and 'gay' marriage after recent court rulings in California, in Britain, where the commercial was aired, nationwide civil union laws have been in effect since passage of the Civil Partnership Act of 2004, which grants rights to homosexual couples in areas such as employment, pensions, social security, property and housing but does not officially recognize homosexual partnerships as marriages.

In the first nine months after the act went into effect in December 2005, Britain registered more than 15,000 legally recognized homosexual partnerships.

Heinz has not commented on whether the advertisement was meant to portray homosexual mores or simply ironic humor, and Britain's Advertising Standards Authority has not yet decided whether to launch an investigation into the ad's potential violation of decency standards.

Though complaints were registered that the commercial was unsuitable for children to view, the ad would have been banned from running during children's television programming because of UK laws that restrict commercials for products high in fat, salt and sugar.

The advertisement, generated by an agency called AMV BBDO, was the first created after the company won a £10 million advertising contract with Heinz earlier this year.

Video of Heinz Ad

 

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